Awaken, Noblesse
by Syynex
Summary: Rukia never gave Ichigo her powers, he didn't need them. Granted the power of the Noblesse by Cadis Etrama Di Raizel himself, Ichigo learns that with great power comes great boredom. Crossover with Noblesse.
1. Dreams and Demons

It was that dream again. The dream in which he stood next to a tall, pale, black-haired man and watched, what he assumed to be, that man's life, though that didn't make any sense, these images lasted several centuries, possibly millennia, no man lived that long. But then again, the same man appeared in each memory, perhaps it was reincarnation?

These dreams had gone on for years, ever since his mother, Kurosaki Masaki, may her soul rest in peace, died. These dreams had effected him. To live centuries in your dreams would undoubtedly change you. He could feel everything the stranger felt; the fear, hate, love, loss, everything. He watched loved ones he had never met before pass away, watched the figure wallow in sorrow and depression before forming more bonds and repeating the process. His heart was broken so many times he couldn't keep track, and he still hadn't been on his first date yet!

The memories made him colder, calmer, and surprisingly, more elegant, more noble, it was kind of scary. He thought his remaining family might say something, but they seemed to consider it his way of coping, though they still found it disturbing when he drank his tea so, so perfectly! It wasn't natural!

He had taken to wearing clothes like the stranger in his dreams; grey slacks, a blue dress-shirt, brown shoes, a white tie, and a white, two-button jacket. His hair, like the dream intruder's, was long, usually covering his eyes. His family found it odd but, once again, figured it was his way of coping with the death of Masaki.

The memories suddenly stopped, something that had never happened before. Gracefully, the figure turned to him.

"We will stop your learning for now." It spoke. It's voice was smooth and flowing, completely devoid of any unnecessary emotion. "You have an uninvited guest within your room, shake off your slumber and determine why, we will resume when you return. Now, awaken!

His dark brown eyes opened to see a woman in a black hakama standing above his head, a sword at her side and a black butterfly hovering next to her. They seemed to emerge from a black portal on his wall, he thought he would have noticed that before he went to sleep.

The intruder finished their jump over his bed and landed in the middle of his room, looking around as if searching for something. He absentmindedly noted that the black butterfly with her landed on his desk.

Silently he got out of bed, moving with the inhuman grace he picked up from his dreams, and moved behind his midnight visitor. A quick strike rendered her unconscious. He moved to his closet and removed several ties that soon found themselves tightly wrapped around the petite intruder, which would keep her from moving should she wake up.

Once she was bound he removed her sword, a plain looking katana. He examined it, noting the superior craftsmanship and that it felt too heavy for it's size. Either the person who made the blade messed up somehow, or it was resisting movement for a reason he couldn't determine.

It wasn't long after he took her sword that she woke, which was surprising. He had expected her to be out longer. His face remained impassive, however, as he watched her wake. He had left her on her stomach and was standing before her, the stranger's sword in his left hand and it's point hovering near her face.

After her violet eyes had opened and she found herself immobile she began looking around the room, her sight settling on the sword near her face and the bare feet in front of her. Her neck craned upwards to see her captor, clad in black pajama pants and a white T-shirt. His face was unreadable and his eyes, the little of them seen from under his hair, were cold.

"Good evening, intruder-san." he said in what could be called a bored tone. She struggled with the binds but they held strong. These were the best ties he could get, he wouldn't accept anything less, and he would've been disappointed if they broke so easily.

"Hey you!" she called out. "Let me go!" she continued her futile attempts to get free as he looked on in slight amusement.

"And why, might I ask, should I do that?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow. "You were trespassing and entered my room with a weapon. Do you even have a license for that?"

"Wh-what? No I don't have a license for my Zanpakuto! You shouldn't even be able to see me!" she shouted.

His eyebrow raised once more. "So I should be blind? Or perhaps you're a spirit, and were expecting me to be spiritually unaware. I happen to be spiritually aware and, because you've been tied up, I can obviously see you." he turned his attention back to the sword, trying to discover the reason it moved through the air so slowly.

"Stop ignoring me and let me go!" she yelled. This had to be the most embarrassing thing ever, captured by a human and ignored in favor of her sword. She was a shinigami! How could she possibly be less interesting then her blade?!

"I'm a shinigami, you fool!" she shouted. "Let me go or I'll take your soul!" she was bluffing, of course, shinigami were forbidden from harming human souls, but he couldn't know that.

His attention returned to his captive once more. "And how do I know you won't take it anyway?" he asked. "You came into my room with a sword, for all I know you were here for my soul anyway, something I don't feel like losing anytime soon. Besides, if I was able to defeat you with one hit, how could you possibly do anything to me? You are in no position to make idle threats, little shinigami."

Her face turned red, whether it was from the embarrassment of being defeated so easily or anger because her captor wouldn't free her even she didn't know. She could only imagine the look on her Nii-Sama's face when he found out.

That cold voice of his was pissing her off, he didn't seem to care that he had captured a shinigami, and treated her as though she was some random stranger breaking into his house, it hurt her pride, damnit!

Ichigo froze while moving the shinigami's Zanpakuto. _'You will not wield me!' _did the sword just speak? _'Return me to my mistress!' _apparently it did, and it didn't enjoy being held by his human hands, tough luck. The sword seemed to speak to his mind, so he figured thinking would allow him to talk to the blade. _'I have defeated your mistress and have taken you for myself, for as long as I find need of you. You will bend to my will, the will of your current wielder, and nothing you do will change that.' _pain shot up his arm and he could swear it was freezing, judging by the blue tint to his skin, he was probably right. He could feel the will of the sword's residing spirit like a cold gust of wind. It seemed to show around the blade as a white aura that traveled up his left arm.

"My blade is made of my soul, ningen." said the shinigami smugly. "You cannot wield it, even other shinigami are unable to unless either I or my Zanpakuto allow it."

"You and your sword have a will, and so do I." as he spoke a red aura covered his entire body and, in response, the shinigami began glowing the same white as her sword. "If I force my will onto the sword's spirit, and overcome it's own, it will obey me."

The shinigami's amethyst eyes widened, she had never thought about it that way, and she doubted any other shinigami had either. Theoretically, it should be possible, but to exert enough will to overcome two souls at once would be nearly impossible, in her opinion, only the Captain Commander would be able to accomplish such a thing, maybe one of the older captains, but not a human.

"Your resolve is of the purest white." he spoke again, his tone colder then the Zanpakuto's icy aura. "I shall stain it crimson until none remains, and I will force your soul to submit to my own. I wish to wield this blade, and wield it I shall." the aura surrounding the teen increased, it's red glow intensifying . Slowly it began creeping across his arm, pushing back the white aura that was attacking it's owner. The white became pink and the pink grew darker, swiftly changing into the deep red it should've been.

Ichigo allowed a small smirk to grace his features as his will began overtaking the Zanpakuto's handle. The shinigami was panting on the floor, doing everything to stop him from crushing her soul, but it appeared to be useless, his desire to wield the blade continued to travel the length of her sword, breaking through any resistance it put up. The bloody aura reach the tip and with one more push from Ichigo it's will was shattered. No, not shattered, crushed, turned to a fine dust that blew away in the wind, fading into non-existence.

The shinigami winced as she heard her Zanpakuto scream, losing control over it's being.

She couldn't believe it, he had actually done it, he had forced the Zanpakuto to accept him as it's wielder. She pitied the sprit that was to become his Zanpakuto in the future, there was no doubt that he would become a shinigami when he died.

A loud roar sounded from outside and her head snapped up. It was here, the hollow she had been looking for, (see: 'trying to locate reiatsu while exerting all your will and attention in an effort to keep one's Zanpakuto') she had found it! (see: 'it found targets in the house she happened to be tied up at.') she struggled to get free again, needing to purify the hollow before it consumed nearby souls, but still had no luck escaping.

"Untie me, ningen!" she yelled. "I must purify the hollow before it devours the souls of the living!" surely he would untie her so she could save innocent souls, right?

He ignored her and began walking to his door, Zanpakuto in hand.

"I don't need you're help, shinigami." his cold eyes seemed to bore into her soul, judging her, and ultimately finding her unworthy. He left, moving with inhuman grace down the stairs to face the beast that was her duty to purify.

When he was out of sight she began moving, as fast as her bound state would allow, to the stairs. Maybe she could find a way to free herself down there and stop the hollow, preferably after it ate the teen who caught her.

When she crashed at the bottom of the stairs she couldn't believe her eyes. There, kneeling before an unmoving orange-haired teen, was the hollow. What the hell?!

**/Earlier/ **

Ichigo swiftly descended the stairs to find huge hole in his living room, taking up most of, what used to be, the living room wall. Karin and his father, usually referred to as Goat-chin, were sprawled across the floor amongst broken furniture. The monster stood outside in the street, Yuzu, the youngest, squirming in it's grasp. The beast took notice of the Zanpakuto wielding teen, tossing away Yuzu, who landed on a couch, and turning to face him. Ichigo walked calmly out into the streets and the hollow, seeing as it had no reason to keep it's meal away, made no move to stop him.

When he arrived in the middle of the road the hollow licked it's lips and released a roar. As it charged time appeared to slow around him.

'_Ichigo, I bestow upon you my powers. Command it and it shall obey, no will can match your own.' _spoke the dream-man.

Ichigo's eyes glowed red as he stared into the eyes of the hollow, pushing every ounce of his will into his frozen gaze.

"Kneel." The simple order had so much authority the hollow immediately stopped it's charge, unable to move even a millimeter more, and was on one knee within a second of the command. A smirk tugged at the teen's lips, and he made no move to resist it spreading over his face.

'_H-how?' _Questioned the death god as she stared in amazement. _'To control a hollow is considered almost impossible, even for extremely powerful hollows. For a hollow to obey a human they have never encountered before, just who is he? First he shows the will to overcome two souls, and now the ability to completely control a soul!' _

Despite the somewhat serious moment, the petite woman couldn't help but imagine Ichigo, clad in robes, wind blowing through his hair, and a staff in his left hand calling himself a 'Soul-Mage'. Perhaps she should stop watching all that anime on T.V…

She continued to watch as Ichigo moved up to the hollow, which made no move against him, to lay his empty right hand on the hollow's mask. His left hand raised and leveled her sword to the monster's forehead. Instead of plunging it into the hollow that attacked his family like she had expected, he spoke.

"Purify yourself, demon." His frozen voice cut through the night air, smooth and nearly emotionless. The authority it held was unmistakable and the shinigami felt as though she should 'purify' herself, even when he was speaking with the hollow.

To the shinigami's amazement the nameless hollow obeyed once more, leaning it's head forward until the blade pierced it's mask, causing it to dissolve into ash and reiryoku [spiritual energy]. Instead of dissipating the remaining reiryoku flew to the orange haired teen, where they were absorbed into his chest, near the heart.

Having no more use for the sword he tossed it in the air, causing it to imbed itself before a baffled shinigami, a little too close for comfort.

"Take it," Ichigo spoke as he grabbed Yuzu and began moving upstairs. "I have no need for it now." He returned for the rest of the family, placing them in their beds before heading for bed himself. He turned of his light and crawled under his covers, he would deal with the living room in the morning…..if he felt like it, which would be unlikely.


	2. A New Noblesse

**Okay, i know it's been awhile, but I'm back. I apologize for not updating this or any of my other stories, but I write as it comes to me. I only have one story that I have planned out, and I never got past writing the first chapter. I'll be starting a new one [Yeah, another one. if NeonZangetsu-Senpai can have 300+ two-chapter stories, so can I.] as soon as this is posted. please let me know what you think, and feel free to offer any suggestions for this story. if you dont want to give suggestions via review, because you don't think this chapter deserves it, then please just PM them to me. I apologize once more and thank everyone who takes the time to read my stories.**

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Soon after he had fallen asleep, Ichigo found himself in a dark room. The floors were dark wood, recently polished, and the walls were all a light grey. There was an absence of windows and doors, leaving the job of lighting the room to a dim chandelier hanging over a coffee table in the middle of the room. There were two seats, one on either side of the coffee table, covered in dark leather and possessing high backs.

There was a man sitting in the chair across from him, the same man from his dreams, and the same man who had lent Ichigo his power to deal with the hollow. He sat there, calmly drinking his tea, waiting for the orange haired young-man to take a seat, which he did.

Ichigo took the time to pour himself a cup of tea, leaning into the soft chair and taking a small sip. Even though he was relaxing, he managed to sit as regally as the mysterious man across from him, no small feat.

"You have questions." It was more of a statement then a question, but Ichigo nodded nonetheless.

"Yes." replied Ichigo. "Would I be right to assume you posses the answers?" the figure gave a smile.

"That would be correct." Answered the dream-man. "Let's start with my name. I am known, or was known, as Cadis Etrama Di Raizel, a pleasure to meet you, Kurosaki-san."

" Likewise, Raizel-san, your name is quite a mouthful." responded Ichigo.

"It is indeed." smiled Raizel, it had been quite some time since he had been able to hold a pleasant conversation. "You may refer to me as Rai, if you wish." He got a small nod of acknowledgement from Ichigo.

" And, if you prefer, you may call me Ichigo." Spoke the high school student.

"I believe it would be best if I simply explain as much as I can instead of answering your questions, it would not be good to forget anything." said Rai. Ichigo hummed in agreement as he continued sipping his tea. How he managed to swallow and hum at the same time would remain a mystery to all but he and Rai.

"Then let's begin."

"Once again, my name is Cadis Etrama Di Raizel, the Noblesse. 'Noblesse' is a title given to the strongest vampire, the embodiment of vampiric power. The Vampire Lord rules over all vampires and is the embodiment of authority within our race.

"By separating power and authority, it is easier to keep one vampire from becoming a tyrant with complete, unchallengeable control over all. Of course, this didn't stop the previous Vampire Lord, a good friend of mine, from tying to make me his successor.

"He went into eternal sleep, which could be described as a vampires 'death'. I myself went into eternal sleep several hundred years after, only to awaken within your soul.

" I do not know how long it has been, or if I am within the same plane of existence. Currently I suspect I am within another dimension, as we never beasts as the one you recently encountered."

A smirk crawled across Ichigo's face. "Are you referring to the hollow, or the shinigami?"

"Either one, perhaps both." replied Rai, avoiding a direct answer. If the small smile on his face was anything to go by, he shared a similar sense of humor.

"Back to the 'Noblesse' we have the ability to control anything that has less power then ourselves, excluding the vampire lord. The pinnacle of authority can't be controlled by others, it wouldn't make sense.

"The head of each noble vampire house possesses a special weapon, similar to a shinigami's Zanpakuto, that are passed down from head to eldest child. These weapons have either ceased to exist, or are not within this dimension, regardless of why, there is no need for me to explain them to you, as you will not encounter them, or another vampire, for that mater.

"The only weapon here is the one I shall give to you, the blade of the Vampire Lord, Ragnarok. I was unable to wield it, but you should be able to. I had my own soul weapon, and no doubt you will have your own, but to use both to the best of their abilities, I suggest merging them together. This will rectify any problems, such as Ragnarok not accepting you, and will allow you to focus on one blade.

"To merge, you will need to absorb Ragnarok into your blood, so that when you manifest your soul weapon using your noble blood and your soul, you will summon an empowered Ragnarok instead. This is the only way for you to possess the power of both, there is no reason to lose half of your blade's potential power.

"When you receive my power your blood and body will be converted to be nearly identical to my own, allowing you to use my power to the greatest possible degree. Of course, because you'll be the only vampire in existence, you'll become Vampire Lord by default. Congratulations." Rai took a sip of his tea.

If any of this fazed Ichigo, he did nothing to show it. He sat there calmly sipping his tea as if they were discussing something of no consequence, such as the weather, or a soon-to-open coffee shop.

"Thank you."

Rai set down his cup and leaned into his chair once more, continuing the explanation.

"Continuing the discussion of powers, I should inform you of mine, soon to be yours. Physically, I posses both strength and speed unmatched, moving vast distances almost instantly and able to stop anything with little or no effort. This makes most of your other powers pointless, as very few will be able to hold their own against you.

"With my powers, the minds of others can be referred to as my playthings, If you see fit to do so. I can connect with the minds of others, speak to them, read their minds, and, as you witnessed earlier, completely control them. This helped you with both the hollow and Zanpakuto, whom you may wish to speak to at some point. Even if you did release her, you managed to take control, and she may see you as a second master.

"Telekinesis is available for you to use, and though it's mostly used to make life easier, it can be used in combat situations. Another thing that makes life a little easier is your ability to change clothes at will. This allows you to blend in anywhere, and can be used if you find yourself in an unexpected situation, such as in the presence of someone with high status.

"Because you will be in possession of Ragnarok , the next power I will bestow upon you will be enhanced considerably. Blood Field converts the air around the user into blood, and proceeds to circle around the target, erasing their existence. You will probably never use this power. The only situations I can think of is when you truly wish your enemies to feel despair, to let them know that their end is nigh, and to show them the extent of your wrath.

"Normally when releasing your powers, the seal for which I will give you at a later time, you will lose some of your life. Because it is my power you are using, only I will be effected. I however, will be in eternal sleep, so it matters not how much life it takes from me.

" You may, if you feel the need to do so, turn others to vampires. A male must consume blood you willingly give, but to convert a female you need to drink their blood, replacing it with some of your own. I have yet to understand why, but I suspect it has something to do with male vampires being hesitant to bite the neck of another man.

"Anyone you bite will become a servant, or as the Vampire Lord, you could call them subjects. In the end both mean that, mind control or not, they will obey your commands. It has something to do with your blood being within them.

"They will remain almost exactly the same, the only differences being enhanced speed, strength, and rapid regeneration. Unlike you, they will need to feed. If necessary, they can consume your blood for sustenance.

"All that remains for me to tell you are a few warnings. First, for reasons unknown, every noblesse has always developed an addiction to a human food, my predecessors was dango and my own was ramen. Second, others, upon hearing of your power, will wish to have it for themselves, be careful who you ally yourself with.

"Lastly, and most important, you are a teen. As a teen you have hormones. Because you will cease to age in your early twenties, the hormones you have now will most likely remain for the rest of your existence. A vampires lust is hard to control, and adding the hormones of a teenage boy will make it nearly impossible. You will seek mates, though you may not realize this, and you will seek to satisfy your lust with those mates. Do not confuse mates with wives, however, as they are different. A vampire's mate could be called a lover, sometimes more, rarely less. The reason we use the name mate is to identify them as ours, to show that they have been claimed and are off-limits to others.

"Do not try to suppress these feelings. If they are not satisfied they will build until you can no longer control them, which would cause you to take the first potential mate you see, regardless of the situation, location, or consequences.

"Don't assume this only affects you, either. You will be constantly releasing pheromones, causing those who would qualify as a mate to become attracted to you. This will help you make them your mates, as they will be more willing, but they don't have to want it. I'm not telling you to go out and make lovers like no tomorrow, but if an opponent of yours displays the qualities you look for in a mate, probably something to do with strength, you may turn her into a vampire to become mates with latter.

"And while they don't have to be turned before you mate with them, it is recommended, unless, of course, you wish to turn them afterwards. I have no doubt you will try to turn chosen mates into vampires afterwards, if only to see if you could gain them as a mate before having any control over them.

Rai gave him a knowing look, to which Ichigo shrugged. "I like a challenge." He explained himself.

"Now then, I believe that's everything." The Noblesse took a sip of tea to recover from the explanation.

Ichigo was silent for a moment. "That's quite a lot to take in." he received a small nod from the rooms other occupant.

"I have one question still." Stated the soon-to-be Noblesse. Rai nodded once more, gesturing for Ichigo to continue.

"Why did you chose to give me your powers?" he asked.

Giving a shrug that didn't seem to suit him, the Noblesse answered.

"Honestly, it's because I awoke within you, and I wish to rest, as I had originally planned. I have spent years giving you my memories, tonight you will receive the last of them, and I will become unnecessary.

" will slumber and you will use my powers as you see fit. If you chose to never use them, then you never use them. If you wish to rule the world through the powers granted to you, you can set about doing so. They're your powers now. Just as you had no need for the shinigami's Zanpakuto, I find myself with no need for my power."

"Thank you, Raizel-san." said Ichigo.

Rai once again placed his cup upon the table. He stood up, displaying the grace Ichigo had managed to emulate over the years, and moved to one of the walls. From that wall appeared a coffin, elegant and black, a silver cross reminiscent to the Noblesse's earring engraved in silver on the cover.

He climbed in and turned to Ichigo.

"I have few memories left, watch them and awaken as the new Noblesse. Never regret a decision made concerning my power, continue to move forward, learn from your mistakes, and act as you believe you should. Your goals are your own, but you need only the will to accomplish them to make them reality. Farewell, Noblesse-sama."

When he had finished the coffin closed, slowly melding into the wall and leaving the silver cross Ichigo had come to associate with him as a memorial for the previous noblesse. A memorial for Rai, no, a memorial to Cadis Etrama Di Raizel, the greatest pure-blooded vampire to ever exist.

Ichigo sighed as he looked around, noticing that one of the walls had begun to show the remaining memories of his predecessor. He sat back in his chair, deciding to leave the other alone as a sign of respect, and poured himself another cup of tea. He remained there for the rest of the night, watching the life of the previous noblesse, Cadis Etrama Di Raizel, the one who had given him power enough to accomplish anything.

The one he would always remember as the father of this new age of vampires. An age ruled by one Kurosaki Ichigo, the Vampire Lord.


	3. A Lack of Tea

**Okay, fist of all, I would like to thank _Maverick14th_-sempai for all her help. Secondly, I would like to thank all my readers for, well, reading. ^_^ Lastly I'm going to make a guide. I know you guys are probably smart enough to figure it out on your own, but I'm going to add it anyway. **

**bold **unassigned

_**bold italics**_- unassigned

**bold underline **- unassigned

_**Bold underline italics**_- unassigned

_italics_- thought/ emphasis (single word, usually)

_underlined italics_-ichigo talking within someone's mind.

underlined - unassigned

normal - normal ^_^

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Kurosaki Ichigo, the new Noblesse and Vampire Lord, awoke the second light entered his room. It was barely dawn, but he had no need to continue sleeping.

He slipped out from under his covers and moved to his closet before halting mid-step. Why was he going to his closet? With a simple thought his clothing changed to his normal attire, a small weight hanging from his left ear.

He cast a quick glance into a small mirror he had in his room to see the cross earring Rai had worn during his life, a seal to contain his monstrous power.

He was going to grab his book bag but once again stopped, deciding to try another of his new powers. With a glance, the bag flew through the air, only to be caught in his outstretched arm.

A small smile appeared upon his face. He truly had been granted such a wonderful gift.

Remembering the words of Rai, Ichigo stretched his left arm out before him, palm up, and almost instantly Ragnarok appeared. It was a beautiful sword, a shining blade attached to a hilt of pure gold. From the pommel was a small golden cross and a glowing red ruby sat securely at the guard.

Beautiful he thought as he admired it. Slowly he willed his blood to raise from his outstretched palm, within seconds it had complied.

_It takes too long, I need to work on that._

The blood was ordered to converge upon the blade, slowly covering the shimmering metal. When it was done he absorbed it, sword and all, back into his body.

He could feel his power increase, and the cross struggle with the sudden surge, but after a moment both calmed.

Walking silently down the stairs he found himself in a completely normal living room. He simply stood there for a moment before blinking and continuing on with preparing his morning tea.

The shinigami had obviously fixed it as to not draw attention, he wouldn't be surprised if she did something to the memories of his family, too.

He sat at the table, drinking his tea and reading the morning paper. Yuzu would be up soon and would go take a fifteen minute bath before coming down to make breakfast for the family.

It wasn't five minutes later that he heard footsteps upstairs and water running.

When Yuzu arrived in the living room Ichigo was making his second pot of tea and had already turned on the stove for her.

She gave him a smile and set about making eggs, rice, and bacon. She had no idea how he was always up before her, and she had tried on numerous occasions to wake up first. One morning she woke at three, only to see him standing above her, turning off her alarm, and quietly telling her to go back to bed.

Sometimes Yuzu and her sister, Karin, felt like Ichigo was their father, and Isshin was their older brother.

Okay, younger brother, but that's not the point.

As Ichigo sat back down with his tea and Yuzu continued cooking, Karin stumbled down the stairs, half asleep.

"Morning" she mumbled as she sat at the table. A cup of tea was moved in front of her and she gratefully accepted it, taking large gulps that made her brother's eyebrow twitch.

"Karin," he began dangerously "what have I told you about drinking your tea?"

Yuzu spun around from the stove, shocked that her twin would forget, and Karin froze.

"S-sorry, Ichi-nii." she stuttered. normally Karin wouldn't be afraid of her brother, but he was scary when it came to tea. You drank it to his minimum expectations or you spent ten hours on Saturday learning to drink it properly. That was a Saturday she wouldn't wish on anyone.

"Don't forget again, Karin." He warned. "Or I'll have to give you another lesson on how to drink correctly."

"O-of course, Ichi-nii, I wont forget again." he continued to stare at her, his red eyes boring into her own, wait, red eyes?

"Ichi-nii, your eyes, they're red." she commented. A frown crossed his face and his eyebrows knitted together.

Red? His eyes shouldn't be red. Maybe it was a result of becoming a vampire. He turned towards Yuzu, who was switching between watching her siblings and watching the food as it cooked.

"Yuzu," he asked softly. "are my eyes red?" her eyes caught his own for a moment before she squealed and ran up to get a better look.

"They're so beautiful, Ichi-nii!" only his immense control over his emotions kept a sweat-drop from forming.

_Beautiful? My eyes are beautiful? You'd think red eyes would scare people…_

"Yuzu, shouldn't you be keeping an eye on the food?" Karin's voice stopped Yuzu's staring, causing her to squeak and run off to the stove.

Five minutes later the three Kurosaki siblings were sitting around the table eating. Breakfast was quiet, everyone more concerned with getting food before school than conversation. When it was over Ichigo washed the dishes and the three of them went off to school, not feeling bothered that their father hadn't joined them for the meal.

As Ichigo walked into the classroom he was greeted by a chorus of 'Ohayou, Kurosaki-kun' from most of his female classmates.

Another small smiled tugged at his lips. At least some things didn't change.

"Ohayou, girls." he greeted pleasantly. He was immediately surrounded.

"Where did you get that earring?"

"Do you want to go out with me?"

"Your eyes are so beautiful, are they contacts?"

"You look paler, do you want to go to the beach with me?"

He gave a chuckle and kind smile. "A good friend of mine gave me this earring." He answered. "These are my normal eyes, I wore contacts so I wouldn't scare anyone away."

Some of them looked slightly confused. "Why would we be scared or Kurosaki-kun?" one asked.

"Yeah, Kurosaki-kun would never hurt us."

"Kurosaki-kun is our protector!" shouted another. cheers of agreement came from all of them.

His smile never left his face. "Calm down girls, we wouldn't want you to get in trouble now, would we?"

A chorus of "No, Kurosaki-kun!" was heard.

"Good, now get to your seats, class starts soon." With that he made his way over to his desk, in the far right corner, near the window.

* * *

Class went by as normal, though he noticed that all the women, including Arisawa Tatsuki, a girl he used to spar against, his homeroom teacher, Ms. Ochi, and even the resident lesbian Chizuru kept taking glances at him.

_He wasn't kidding when he spoke of the pheromones._

Other then being stared at, well, more than he normally was, class was the same as every other school day. He sat there, pretending to listen to things he already knew while practicing summoning blood from his palm, or turning the air around his palm to blood.

When lunch came around he made his way up to the roof. He stood near the fence, looking down upon other students eating, and enjoying the gentle breeze.

His head suddenly snapped to the left, near the school gates, and he was met with the sight of the shinigami from last night. He narrowed his eyes, wondering what she could possibly be doing at Karakura high school.

She continued to stand there, staring at him, for a few minutes before rushing off upon detecting a hollow.

Ichigo's eyes narrowed further.

That hollow was near his sisters' school.

* * *

Kurosaki Karin looked on in horror as the hazy figure continued to advance towards her. It had attacked the school, destroying walls and throwing people, it seemed to be looking for something. Or rather some people, as it targeted both her and her sister, who lay unconscious next to her.

She could feel blood drip down from her forehead and struggled to stand. No use, she couldn't get up.

As seconds passed the figure started to become clearer. Is this what the spirits her brother saw looked like? If so, why could she see it better now? It couldn't be, could it? Could she really be dying?

The beast was drawing closer, and so was her end in the mortal plane. The hollow charged, excited to feed.

It was stopped, however, by the appearance of a black-robed woman.

* * *

Ichigo sat in his room that evening, doing homework at his desk, when he noticed something that had slipped his mind that morning; a black butterfly. It sat on his desk, at the same spot it landed when it entered his household with the shinigami.

His right hand placed down his pencil before he extended his index finger, which the butterfly fluttered to.

He brought the finger closer to his red eyes for a better look.

It was about the size of his hand, maybe slightly larger, from one tip of its wing to the other. The butterfly was completely black save for three red marks on the bottom of each wing.

Curious about it, he tried to connect to its mind. Surprising himself, and no doubt the butterfly, he succeeded.

"A hell butterfly, huh? Interesting." he mumbled. _who do you serve, little one?_ he had almost expected it to remain silent, but was pleased when it managed to respond.

_"we serve shinigami"_ it answered. 'we'? that meant there were others, perhaps all shinigami had one.

_What do the shinigami use you for?_

_"we guide them to the world of the living, and allow them to communicate between each other."_

_So, they were basically a phone, why? Why would they have a creature who's entire existence is devoted to being a phone? It seems pointless._

_What shinigami do you serve?_

_"Kuchiki Rukia."_

_Then why aren't you with her?_ou would think it would stay near it's shinigami, being their guide and all.

_"Kuchiki-sama has lost her powers, I still feel them though, they live within another."_

So she transferred her powers, that couldn't be good.

_What happens to you now that she no longer has powers?_

_"I will fade into non-existence. My kind cannot survive in the human world, shinigami must supply us with energy while we are here."_

_And if I were to give you the energy you needed?_

_"I would become your hell butterfly, and feed off of your power."_

He had always wanted a pet, so why not? He spares the creature its life and finally gets a pet, everybody's happy.

He focused a miniscule amount of his power to his finger, allowing the butterfly to sap the energy from it. Oddly enough, appearing on the back of each of the butterfly's wings was a silver cross, that symbol seemed to be following him.

_"I sense it! I sense Kuchiki's reiatsu, it's near, below us!"_ at that moment he heard the door open and a call of "I'm home" from Karin. _So Karin is a shinigami now, I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised._

Ichigo got up from his desk and walked down the stairs to see his sister next to the shinigami, well, ex-shinigami. Said ex-shinigami tensed when she noticed him.

"Ah, Ichi-nii, this is, um…" her sister began nervously, but was interrupted by his voice.

"Kuchiki Rukia." The look of shock on both of their faces was priceless, it was difficult for him to keep his face impassive.

"So, little shinigami, you seem to have lost your power." The grin he gave when he said that terrified both of them, especially when they noticed that his canines were long and pointed, not much longer than a normal person, but enough to be noticeable.

They had no idea how he knew all this, it's not like he could read minds or something, right?

"Well, I suppose she will remain here to help you with your new shinigami powers, Karin."

Once again they could only stare in shock. It truly was fun messing with people.

He took a quick glance at the shinigami's mind in order to see any possible consequences that might stem from recent developments.

He gave a frown, confusing both black-haired girls. "They will find out eventually, you cannot hide the power transfer from Seireitei forever. You know the punishment for doing so is death, and even your precious 'Nii-Sama' will be unable to get you out of it."

"H-how?" stuttered Rukia. "How could you possibly know about Nii-sama?"

Ichigo gave a smirk as his eyes briefly glowed a vibrant red. "That's a secret, little shinigami."

After that he walked off into the kitchen for some tea. It was several moments later that Rukia and Karin felt a wave of deadly emotion pass over them. They rushed to the source, only to find Ichigo, his head lowered, facing away from them.

"Out." Came the whisper. "We're out."

"We're out of what?" asked Karin cautiously. There was very little that could possibly get her brother like this.

"We're out of tea." Rukia almost sweat-dropped, but refrained from doing so when she saw Karin's panicked expression.

"Yuzu!" she called. "We need to go shopping, there's no more tea!" Yuzu was down is seconds, already putting on her shoes.

Karin grabbed onto Rukia and rushed out after her sister, they needed that tea, and fast.

Ichigo remained unmoving, dark emotion pouring off him in waves. "There's…no more…tea."


	4. Invitation to Tea

**Once again i would like to thank Maverick14th-Sempai for her help.**

* * *

Karin, Yuzu, and Rukia ran throughout Karakura town, desperately seeking tea for the eldest Kurosaki sibling.

"How could all the stores possibly be out of tea? Even the tea shop didn't have any!" asked Karin.

"I don't know, Karin, but it's been over an hour, do you think Ichi-Nii is alright? answered a worried Yuzu.

Their brother always had his tea, it was something he had started soon after the death of Masaki. For him not to get it, Yuzu shivered, he would probably lose it. She hadn't seen it happen very often, but sometimes his wicked side came out to play, usually when he didn't have his tea.

"Why is getting tea so important?" asked Rukia, the petite shinigami not understanding why they were so worried.

"Ichi-Nii drinks tea to calm himself." stated Karin. "If he's not calm he starts to lose control. He once missed his afternoon tea protecting us from some street punks, they almost didn't make it. I heard they were in the hospital for a good half of the year, before they fell into their coma."

Rukia had the sudden desire to help the girls find tea for their brother, it seemed to be in her best interest. Living in a house with an unstable boy possessing the power to take control of her Zanpakuto didn't sound very fun.

"I know where we can get some, follow me!" she shouted, bolting off to the Urahara shop. The two twins followed, hoping Rukia was right. A wave of dark emotion washed over them, it was getting worse if they could feel it from so far away, they _really _needed that tea.

* * *

"Urahara!" called a worried shinigami as she stood outside the shop, the Kurosaki twins behind her.

The wooden door slid open, revealing Urahara Kisuke. "Ah, Kuchiki-san~" he sang. "How nice of you to visit me!~"

"Not now, Kisuke! We need tea, and fast." she said.

"You need…tea?" he asked "Whatever for?"

A dark wave of emotion passed over him at that moment, nearly causing him to choke.

"For _that._" answered the Kuchiki.

Kisuke stood there, frozen. What could possibly posses such dark emotion? Depression, despair, misery, all of it conveyed., and for it to be over a lack of tea, who the hell was that?

Wait, beyond the emotions, he could feel something, something big. Something….powerful. He dove into it, hoping to find it's source.

He found it.

Power, pure and raw, surrounded him. Crushing him as his shoe might an ant. Here he was, a powerful ex-captain, and his own being was so easily overwhelmed by the sheer pressure this unknown power exerted upon him.

* * *

The world around him warped away, leaving him in an endless abyss. Solid ground formed under his feet, from which rose tendrils of fog. A haze stopped him from seeing more than 20 feet away, and that silence, oh, the silence! It was deafening, not even his breathing could be heard.

He clapped his hands together as hard as he could; nothing. Not the slightest sound escaped his hands. Wherever the hell he was, he definitely didn't like it.

His observations about his surroundings were halted when, in the air, a pair of glowing red eyes appeared. They stared down upon him, looking at his soul, sifting through his memories, picking him apart as a scientist might pick apart a specimen to better understand it.

The eyes bore down upon him for what seemed an eternity, never blinking, never halting in their impassive gaze.

"Foolish shinigami, did you really seek out the extent of my powers? One such as you cannot begin to comprehend the true depth of my might, cannot fathom what I am capable of."

The voice was cold, holding not an ounce of emotion. Kisuke didn't believe in gods, being a shinigami himself, but at this moment, standing under the gaze of this being, he could swear he was in the presence of one.

"You're hiding something, shinigami, something dark. I can sense it, tied closely to your biggest fears."

Kisuke immediately began worrying. Could this being speak the truth, did it truly know?

"Indeed, I know everything, Kisu-kun." The voice remained cold and uncaring, not changing in the slightest.

The shopkeeper froze.

_Kisu-kun, promise Kaa-chan you'll grow up strong to protect those you care about._

_I promise, Kaa-chan!_

"H-how do you know that name, the only one to call me that was…"

"Your mother." The voice finished for him. "Even now you don't believe me. I know everything about you, every memory, every dream, ever thought. I can see into your mind, all because you so foolishly tried to sense my power. Though I must commend you, to track emotion back to it's source, very impressive, especially when I don't have reiryoku."

"Now, let's see what you're hiding." It muttered. "Visored, shinigami, Aizen, traitor, Hogyoku."

"Ah, is that what you're planning? Brilliant, cruel and heartless, perhaps, but brilliant nonetheless."

Kisuke continued to stand there, to shocked to move or utter a single word.

How, how could it possibly enter his mind when he had been investigating them? How did the tables turn? Could they have felt his attempted intrusion, and done the same? Is that why all he knew, all he was, was now lain before this unknown entity?

This thing, _this _was the one who was depressed over tea? It didn't seem possible. There was no way something this powerful would be upset about something so unimportant.

A crushing weight forced Kisuke to the ground. All air left his lungs and he couldn't find the strength to take another breath.

"**Unimportant?**" The voice bellowed. "**You **_**dare **_**claim that tea is unimportant?**"

The shopkeeper found himself trembling. "N-not at all," He stuttered. "It just seems such a trivial thing when compared to yourself. I couldn't believe it would be so precious to something with your power. I believe your sisters are currently at my shop inquiring about some, I'll be sure to send it back with them."

"Hmm, very well, foolish shinigami. Remember, I know your plans. I will allow them, for now, but if they endanger my family, know that my wrath will be upon you."

"O-of course." he would never admit it to others, but he was terrified by this being, something that held so much power. He idly wondered who had more power, this unknown or the spirit king? "Can I know your name?"

"I am Kurosaki Ichigo, Noblesse and current Vampire Lord, you are not to mention that to anyone, am I understood?

"As you wish, Noblesse-Sama." What the hell had happened to Isshin's kid? "By your leave."

The world once again warped around him, dragging him back to reality.

* * *

"Urahara….Urahara….**Urahara!" **Rukia continued to shout, confused as to why there was a glazed look to the shopkeeper's eyes.

His fan snapped before his face so suddenly the three girls couldn't help but to jump back.

"So, tea, was it?" He asked. "If a lack of tea causes such dark emotions they must really enjoy it. Would you mind inviting him over tomorrow? I would love to meet a fellow tea enthusiast."

He cast a glance over at the female ex-shinigami, letting her know it wasn't because of the tea, that he had found something to become as curious as her.

"Yeah." answered Yuzu cheerfully. "Ichi-Nii loves his tea, I'm sure he would enjoy some company."

"Very well, tell him to meet me here tomorrow after school." He told the young girl. "But for now, let me go see about getting tea for our friend, alright?"

Yuzu simply nodded, happy to get the tea her brother needed. The waves of emotion had stopped, perhaps he had sensed them getting tea? It wouldn't surprise the girl if he had a special sense specifically for tea.

The shopkeeper left only to return several minutes later with a large box. The box, which was actually more of a crate, was filled to the brim with random tea bags and leaves. Hell, there were even a couple cans of the stuff.

"I'm not sure what he likes, so I just grabbed some of everything." Admitted Urahara, still hiding behind his fan, hoping in vain it could shield him from the Noblesse.

"Thanks, Urahara-san!" She chirped. With that the two Kurosaki twins ran off, intent on getting the tea to their brother.

When they were gone Rukia turned to the perverted shopkeeper. "What happened?" she asked.

He was silent for a moment before asker her a question. "Has he ever seemed to know something, something he shouldn't possibly know?"

Eyes wide, she answered. "Yeah, he knew of Nii-Sama, and that I would be executed by Seireitei for transferring my powers."

"When I was feeling out his emotion, I noticed what seemed to be hidden power. I tried to get a better feel for it when I found myself in a different world, much like one's inner world. While I was in it he seemed to know everything about me. I do believe he has the ability to read minds, has he shown any other strange abilities?"

"The night I met him, he took control of my Zanpakuto, and later controlled a hollow." She said, recalling the event.

"Then, if I had to guess, I would dare say he can not only read minds, but has some form of control over them." he stated grimly. "Watch yourself, don't let him use those powers on you anymore than he has, who knows what he might end up doing."

She simply nodded her head before leaving the shop and heading for the Kurosaki household.

She was definitely sleeping with one eye open tonight.

* * *

Ichigo sat at the diner table, enjoying his cup of tea, perfectly calm, as if nothing had happened.

_Is tea really that important? _questioned Rukia as she watched. He had already gone through three pots, and it didn't look like he was planning on stopping anytime soon.

"Ah, I almost forgot, Ichi-Nii!" exclaimed Yuzu. "Urahara-San wanted you to meet him for tea tomorrow after school."

"Is that so? Well, thank you, Yuzu, I think I would enjoy that." Only Rukia noticed that he had licked an elongated canine after he had said this.

Exiting to the living room, she quickly called Urahara to give him a warning. Before the perverted shopkeeper could answer, the phone was snapped shut by a pale hand.

"Now, now, Kuchiki-san, you aren't here to use your phone." Said the Noblesse, a slight smirk on his face telling her that he knew _exactly_ what she was trying to do, and wasn't about to let her ruin his fun.

"The girls are upstairs, I believe." He continued. "Why don't you join them? Or perhaps you would like to enjoy a cup of tea with me? There's plenty left, and I'm not sure I could drink it all myself."

His normally cold and emotionless voice had become smooth, elegant, and, dare she say it, charming. It was if someone had taken Byakuya and made him…..pleasant. Now _that _was a scary thought.

From emotionless statue to host, such a weird change, perhaps it was because she was a guest. No, that didn't make sense. The only other thing he could possibly be doing was, was he doing that? Was he really, she turned to look at his smirk once more, yeah, he was. He was playing with her, toying with the defenseless shinigami. Didn't she feel so loved.

She gave him a small, nervous smile. "I think I'll go join the girls upstairs." she moved to the stairs but stopped at the sound of his voice.

"Take a towel, they're taking a bath right now, feel free to join them." she paused. Did she really feel like taking a bath with the twins? Could she handle the awkwardness?

"On second though," she said, turning towards the table. "I wouldn't want to interrupt important sibling bonding time, I guess I'll join you for tea."

His smirk grew. "Very well, I do so enjoy company when drinking tea. As a Kuchiki, I trust you know how to behave properly?"

She just gave a nod, already nervous. What did he mean by properly? Did he expect her to drink as if she was before the Kuchiki elders? She had a feeling that he did.

Upstairs, both Karin and Yuzu had a feeling that some unlucky soul would be spending a Saturday with their brother, and they pitied them.


	5. Tea

**Posting a new chapter on Halloween. ^_^ I'm probably going to say this in every chapter but THANK YOU, MAVERICK14TH-SUNBAE! She's been reading over my work and catching mistakes I keep missing. I've gotten several reviews commenting on the fact that ichigo's Noblesse addiction is tea, so i figured I'd inform my readers that it's NOT. Ichigo's addiction will appear soon, probably in the next chapter. Thank you, my wonderful readers, for reading. ^_^ Review, don't review, I'm happy if you merely glanced at this page before closing it. ^_^**

* * *

Ichigo had to force down a smirk as Urahara fidgeted before him. The two were sitting in Kisuke's shop, drinking tea in one of the back rooms.

"Urahara," His voice was calm and collected, showing none of the amusement he felt. "Is there something wrong with your tea? You've hardly drank any, it would be a pity to waste it." With the last line he narrowed his eyes at the shopkeeper, daring him to waste the precious drink.

After taking a hurried sip, Kisuke answered. "N-no, of course not, Noblesse-Sama, I was just wrapped up in my thoughts." While this was completely believable, Ichigo wasn't fooled. Deciding to have some more fun at the shopkeeper's expense, the eldest Kurosaki sibling played along.

"Oh, and what thoughts lay so heavily upon your mind?" The smirk once again threatened to appear, and it was with great difficulty that it was repressed.

The shopkeeper stuttered for a moment before speaking. "Y-yes, well, you see, this green tea has such an amazing flavor, I was wondering how a leaf could produce such a thing."

"Really now? I find myself curious as to why Earl Grey would taste like green tea, perhaps it's your cup?" This time he couldn't control the smirk. It spread across his face, revealing sharp canines and impossibly perfect teeth.

Lucky vampires, you never hear about them having cavities, yellow, or crooked teeth. They probably don't even have to brush them.

Sweat began pouring off the shopkeeper, aware that his lie had been known since the beginning.

"Yeah, must be the cup." He said sheepishly. "Anyways, what can you tell me about vampires such as yourself?"

"There is nothing you need to know about me, foolish shinigami." A sense of finality was conveyed with those words, and Kisuke was smart enough not to question it.

It was at that moment they were joined by a black cat. It padded over to Kisuke before hopping into his lap, turning to look at Ichigo.

He met the cat's gaze, his eyes seemed somewhat amused, as if he knew something. Like the fact that no cat could posses such reiatsu.

A minute later the cat found itself rubbing against his folded legs, not knowing why it felt so drawn to the teen. A hand stroked its fur, eliciting a purr from the feline.

"You have a very interesting…..cat, Kisuke." He commented.

"I found it a few years ago, I fed it and it wouldn't leave." Replied a nervous Kisuke, Yoruichi was going to kill him.

Ichigo merely hummed in acknowledgement.

The rest of the afternoon passed away in near silence. Both sat drinking tea, Ichigo occasionally finding ways to show his teeth or make sudden movements that nearly gave the perverted shopkeeper heart attacks.

After the young Vampire Lord had left, Kisuke turned back to the shop, only to be met by the sight of one angry Yoruichi. "A stray that wouldn't leave, huh?" She asked. Oh, he was so fucked.

* * *

"What is it?" asked Ichigo, staring at a plush lion doll.

"It's a stuffed animal, Ichi-Nii, haven't you ever seen one?" answered Karin, a slight smile on her face.

"No, I don't think you or Yuzu ever had any, though I do remember that pair of white panties covered in pink and red hearts….." The giant blush that covered Karin's face was worth ten cups of tea.

"That was a long time ago, Ichi-Nii." she mumbled. The smirk was on his face again.

"Ah, I had forgotten, you wear blue and white striped now, don't you?" Karin froze.

"H-how could you possibly know that?!" She asked. He shouldn't know what she wore, it's not like she left them around, or that he did the laundry.

"You do wear skirts on occasion." Was his simple reply. She just stared at him. He had seen her panties because she wore a skirt before? He had seen up her skirt? Her brother looked up her skirt?!

"Hentai!" She screamed, launching herself at him with a fist drawn back.

He was suddenly gone, only to reappear next to her, her fist in his right hand.

"It's not my fault you cant behave properly while wearing a skirt. Maybe you'd like to join Kuchiki-san and I this Saturday to learn how?"

Karin turned towards Rukia, who had been watching the entire thing. She was the unlucky soul that was spending Saturday with her brother? She shot the ex-shinigami a pitying look.

"No, I'm fine, thanks for the offer though, Ichi-Nii."

"Very well, now, what exactly is this?" He asked as he turned his attention back to the stuffed lion.

"It's a mod soul, it's…." her explanation was cut off by Ichigo.

"You managed to use a stuffed lion to house a mod soul? Interesting." Both Karin and Rukia were confused. He knew what mod souls were?

"_When I was feeling out his emotion, I noticed what seemed to be hidden power. I tried to get a better feel for it when I found myself in a different world, much like one's inner world. While I was in it he seemed to know everything about me. I do believe he has the ability to read minds,…"_

Urahara's words repeated in Rukia's head. It must have been how he knew. He knew everything the shopkeeper knew, it made sense for him to have information on a mod soul Kisuke had at his shop.

Ichigo glanced at the doll. "What is your name?" The stuffed doll remained silent.

"We can do this my way," started Ichigo, a sharp smirk on his face once more. "Or we can do this the hard way." Within his empty right hand formed blood, which began to spin, shaping itself into a blade, a blade that was ever changing, spiking at random intervals, similar to waves. Of course, his hand was angled so that the two black haired girls couldn't see the blood, and only saw him placing an empty hand near the doll's face.

"Kon!" The mod soul shouted. This person was scary, no, terrifying! What kind of monster would destroy such a cute toy as himself?

"And why are you here, Kon?" Asked the Noblesse. Karin answered for the stuffed lion.

"So I can get out of my body." Ichigo looked somewhat puzzled.

"Why don't you just push your reiatsu out of your body, allowing it to pull out your soul? " He asked. Surely that would be easier and…..more reliable. He was looking at the mod soul, not trusting it, it did come from Urahara's shop. Even with knowing about them, if it came from Urahara's shop something always went wrong.

Karin and Rukia looked confused.

"Would that work?" Karin asked Rukia, turning to face the ex-shinigami.

"I-I don't know." she answered. Would that work? Reiatsu came from the soul, if you forced it out of the body, could it really pull your soul out? Reiatsu couldn't be used with a physical body, so by pushing it out it was quite possible that the soul would be forced from the body.

"I suppose it might work, it seems possible."

"I suggest that you go try it, it's not wise to rely so heavily on _this._" Said the Vampire Lord, shaking Kon around slightly.

"Sure, see you later, Ichi-Nii!" Karin and Rukia left the house to go train, leaving Kon with Ichigo. He narrowed his eyes at the doll.

"You do anything, _anything_, I don't approve of around my sisters and I will end your miserable existence. Am I clear?" While speaking Ichigo sent enough killing intent to kill a woman (They produce more killing intent, and, therefore, would be more resistant. ^_^) , but, because Kon didn't have a body to die, he simply felt the crushing weight that threatened to destroy his very being.

The mod soul nodded furiously. "Perfectly clear, Strawberry-Sama!"

Kon found himself slamming into a wall, after going through two others.

* * *

Days passed and things remained relatively peaceful. Kisuke had started training Sado and Inoue, Karin had found a rival in the resident Quincy, Ishida, and he had been stalked by a cat.

The black cat 'belonging' to Kisuke had been following him around, obviously curious. It was harmless, but extremely annoying.

There was also the situation with Rukia. The Saturday he had spent teaching her had paid off, well, around him, at least. She had been on her best behavior ever since, and it was something he was proud of, even if she did have previous teachings, being the Kuchiki clan head's sister(In law).

He sighed as he leaned back in his chair, his completed homework on his desk. His personal hell butterfly fluttered over to him, landing on his right hand, held up specifically for the small animal.

_Two more shinigami are coming through the Senkaimon. _It informed its master.

"Is that so? Interesting, it seems as though the little shinigami's absence was noticed. What can you tell me about them, little one?" He asked, careful to keep his voice quiet. Sure, he could speak directly into its mind, but he had found that it preferred the sound of his voice.

_One captain and one lieutenant, neither have permission to use their full power, Gentei Reiin_

_are at level eight, only twenty percent of their reiryoku is available. They are marked as division six._

"Oh? Captain Kuchiki was sent after her? Fitting, I suppose. Let's go greet our guests." He stood up and walked leisurely towards the location the Senkaimon was to appear at, his Jigokucho following behind.

* * *

Karin stood before the two shinigami, reiatsu pouring off her. She gripped the handle of her Zanpakuto tighter and looked into Renji's eyes, which were wide in surprise.

She shot off, speeding towards the lieutenant, her sword trailing behind. She leapt into the air, slamming her blade against his. He was pushed back, unable to believe the sudden increase in strength. Power reduced or not, she shouldn't be anywhere near his level.

The two continued to fight, speeding towards each other and locking blades again and again, with each strike the Kurosaki shinigami seemed to gain power, which she used without restraint.

She managed to get him on the streets and was about to deal the finishing blow when it happened.

A sudden appearance of white, black, and blue. Before her stood her brother, standing sideways to look at her. Struggling against his middle and index finger was another Zanpakuto, wielded by Kuchiki Byakuya, captain of squad six and Rukia's brother.

The captain was beyond shock as his blade was blocked. It shouldn't be possible, he couldn't even sense reiatsu from the boy!

"Karin." Spoke the Noblesse. "Go tend to the Quincy." Without hesitation she rushed over to the form of her downed rival, not bothering to question her brother's knowledge.

Ichigo's red eyes stared into Byakuya's, his were bored, impassive, and filled with power while Byakuya's were stunned, confused, and arrogant.

Squeezing his fingers together, Ichigo gave a sharp pull, ripping the blade from the hand of the noble.

His right hand griped the handle, noticing that it resisted him, similarly to Rukia's , how…..pitiful. Did it truly hope to resist him?

"Who are you, ningen?" The cold voice brought him out of his thoughts. It was the captain, standing tall and proud, as if he hadn't just been disarmed. Of course, he still had kido, so he wasn't defenseless.

"It is proper to introduce yourself to your superiors first, shinigami." His voice was easily as cold as Byakuya's, perhaps more so.

"Superior?" questioned the noble. "I am Kuchiki Byakuya, captain of squad six and head of noble house Kuchiki!"

"There now," said Ichigo. "That wasn't to hard, was it?" Realizing that he had introduced himself first, the captain narrowed his eyes, probably the closest thing to an angry face he had.

"As to who I am," The Noblesse began. "I see no need to inform you. You are below me in every way, nor do you have enough power, Gentei Reiin or not_,_ to be called my opponent. You are merely an insect on the road, daring enough to steal food, but taking the chance of being crushed by those above you."

Byakuya was definitely angry now. No one called the Kuchiki head an insect, no one!

He began preparing a hado when he heard something that made his, Renji's and especially Rukia's blood run cold.

"Chire, Senbonzakura."


	6. Chire, Senbonzakura

Cortana, rest in peace. you were an awesome, mostly-naked chick who helped me kick Covenant and Flood ass for years. If you know what I'm talking about, you've probably guessed why this chapter is so late; Halo 4. If I spoiled anything for a reader I'm sorry, but I had to put that out there, she deserved it.

Anyways, here's the chapter, thanks to the help of Maverick14th-Sunbae! ^_^

* * *

"Chire, Senbonzakura." The world fell silent as these words were spoken, and even the wind dare not whisper.

Rukia could only stare in horror, knowing exactly what that simple statement meant, and knowing that what came next could only be very bad for her brother.

Renji looked on in shock, realizing that someone was using his captain's release phrase, which meant someone was using a captain-level Zanpakuto, without a limiter. Human or not, anyone with a captain class Zanpakuto was going to be extremely difficult for two Gentei Reiin wearing shinigami.

Byakuya could only watch in disbelief as the stranger, apparently the brother of the human girl that had taken Rukia's power, spoke the release phrase of his Zanpakuto, something no human could possibly know.

Karin had turned towards the confrontation between her brother and the shinigami, only to freeze when she witnessed the sword of Rukia's brother glowing red in Ichigo's hand.

The Zanpakuto pulsed red once before slowly dissolving into tiny, petal-shaped blades. Everyone there, including a semi-conscious Quincy, could hear the agonized scream of the Zanpakuto, forced to conform to the will of the Vampire Lord. All but the Noblesse flinched, pitying the soul that stood against the orange haired teen.

The blades rushed forward, straight to the stunned captain, who barely had time to shout "Danku!".

The translucent barrier appeared just in time to be shattered effortlessly by the Noblesse-empowered flower petals, each a dark red. The small blades continued until they crashed into Byakuya, encircling the shinigami with their deadly edges.

"Sokatsui!" Yelled Byakuya. The torrent of blue energy gave the captain the small opening he needed to escape the crimson prison, and just barely. While he may have made it out unscathed, his haori did not, and was nothing more then shreds of expensive cloth. His Ginpaku Kazahana no Uzuginu scarf, which marked him as Kuchiki clan head, was also damaged, missing both tails, a loss worth several hundred thousand yen, easily.

Ichigo remained impassive, the flower petals continuing their chase of the captain. They twisted and turned, winding through the air in an intricate dance, one that if caught in would be Byakuya's last.

This continued for what seemed an eternity, a never ending battle of hopelessness for the Kuchiki head.

Abandoning defense for a split second in favor of a desperate attack, an action he was well aware could cause his death, he cast a hurried hado at his opponent.

"Haien!" The purple spell tore through the air towards it's target; Senbonzakura was faster.

The small red blades came together in rings, lain atop one another like the scales of a snake. Each ring faced opposite the previous and began spinning, forming the illusion of a winding serpent.

The hado and barrier collided, grinding against each other, fighting to continue their existence, even if they would dissipate moments after victory. Ultimately, it was the Noblesse-enhanced Zanpakuto that emerged victorious, whether or not the fact that the Zanpakuto still relied on Byakuya's reiatsu had anything to do with the hado's failure was unknown to both parties.

The hado was torn apart into pure reiryoku, rendering it harmless, and quickly disappeared. From the center of the serpentine shield emerged the head of a snake, which lunged at Byakuya with its fangs bared. The instant before it hit the captain it froze, and classical music began playing.

Ichigo frowned slightly before reaching into his jacket pocket and removing a Smartphone he had recently purchased. His pressed a few buttons and returned it to his pocket before looking at the confused noble.

"It seems as if I'm late for something important, I suppose I'll have to end this now. I feel I should apologize in advance for this, though I honestly couldn't care less about what I'm about to do."

The petals in the face of the captain returned to the Noblesse, merging next to him forming the shape of a woman, which quickly gained features until it was an exact replica of…

"Hisana…" choked out the Kuchiki head, showing more emotion than Rukia or Renji had ever seen the stoic captain exhibit.

"Byakuya-Sama." Replied the look-alike, its voice identical to the real Hisana's. Unable to think straight, Byakuya ran and embraced her, feeling nothing but the soft skin of his wife. This fact amazed his sister and lieutenant, who had expected him to be cut to shreds for such a foolish act, it seemed as the noblesse was compassionate…

_Squelch_

Or not. With his hand through Hisana's collarbone, the Vampire Lord stared into Byakuya's wide eyes impassively, not caring in the slightest that he had killed the man's 'wife' during their embrace.

The four others looked on in a mixture of shock, horror, and disgust, unable to fathom what they had just seen.

"**Hisana!" **screamed Byakuya in horror. He turned towards the Noblesse, who was wiping the blood of his hand with a silk handkerchief, and lunged, intent on ending the teen's life, using his own hands if he had to.

Grey eyes met glowing red, and it was all over.

"Kneel." the Kuchiki head found his body obeying, kneeling before this boy, no, this _monster _before him, a monster hiding within the skin of a harmless human.

It was then that his eyes noticed Hisana's body, which was slowly reverting to a pile of sakura petals. He had lost control of himself so easily? His enemy had known his greatest desire and used it to send him into a rage, how pitiful.

The petals of Senbonzakura reformed as his blade, which flew into the hand of the Noblesse, only to be impaled within the ground before the kneeling captain. The message was clear; your blade can't harm me, it makes no difference whether or not you have it.

The captain of squad six hung his head in shame, he had been defeated and he knew it was impossible to win as he was now. Still, he had a job to do, he would not further tarnish his Kuchiki honor by failing it.

"Byuakurai." he whispered. The bolt of lightning flashed through the air, striking a surprised Karin, who crumpled onto her Quincy rival.

With that last attack Byakuya fell to the ground, more emotionally exhausted than physically. Still standing tall over the prone form of the captain was Ichigo, who was wearing his smirk once more.

Ichigo watched as Renji took Rukia and an unconscious Kuchiki Byakuya into the Senkaimon. His plans were going smoothly, and that greatly pleased the Noblesse. The Kuchiki head had hit, and was no doubt aiming for, the source of Karin's powers. Death was possible but unlikely, the Vampire Lord was positive that his sister would make it.

The Byuakurai had removed Rukia's power from Karin, giving her the chance to develop her own, power that would grow with and suit the young Kurosaki. Sure, her previous power was impressive, but it wasn't entirely hers. Because of that, it could not increase, no matter what she might do.

By letting Byakuya's hado hit his sister, and allowing Renji to take Rukia back to Seireitei, he gave Karin a reason to develop her own power and provided an opportunity for her to learn more of the spirit world. Though he was definitely suspicious as to why it would be so incredibly important for her to save Rukia, sure they were friends of about a month or so, but to risk your life for such a bond? Something was odd about that. nevertheless, it would be a good experience for the young girl.

He turned slightly to see Kisuke and his employees tending to Karin and Ishida, carefully preparing to move them back to the candy store. Not surprisingly, the werecat was there too, sitting on Tensei's shoulder while staring at him.

"Ichigo-Sama." Addressed Kisuke. " Why did you allow your sister to get hurt?" Urahara was honestly confused, he didn't think the young Noblesse would allow any harm, regardless of severity, to befall his fam-...sisters. The eldest of the Kurosaki siblings probably couldn't care less if his father was injured.

"She must learn. It was necessary for her to get hurt, so that she may realize that there are beings stronger than her, that there are those that might have different views and beliefs, that there are those that will stand against her, that she must overcome. Had I kept her from harm she'd have learned nothing, she wouldn't have something to drive her, a purpose for which to gain power. She must grow strong, strong enough to remain safe, to defend herself. It is a great possibility that I will live forever, should I choose to, but even then I can't always protect her." Was his answer.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm late for an extremely important event." He finished as he began walking away.

"What are you late for?" Questioned a barely-conscious Quincy.

With all seriousness, Ichigo turned his head to the side and answered. "My late-evening tea."

Two weeks passed rather quickly. Karin had regained shinigami powers and learned the name of her Zanpakuto, Orihime increased her healing skill, Sado improved with his 'right arm of the giant', and Ishida worked on his Quincy abilities so he could use a family heirloom.

Ichigo had absolutely no care about said heirloom so he couldn't be bothered to remember its name or use, speaking of Ichigo, the Vampire Lord had gained his Noblesse addiction. Not good.

Flashback

_Ichigo stood on the roof, once again observing students during lunch. It was then that someone approached him. He turned his head slightly to see Michiru Ogawa slowly making her way towards him. Her shyness was as amusing as it was annoying, he supposed it mostly depended on his mood and the situation. _

_The hands that were behind her came forward with a small red box, which earned a quirked eyebrow from Ichigo. The box was thrust forward to him by the blushing girl. _

_The second he had taken it she hurriedly said 'Imsorryithoughtyouwerescary.' And darted off to her friends below._

_He allowed himself to chuckle at her actions before curiously opening the box. Within were small brown shapes, some of which had nuts topping them. They smelt sweet, so he took a bite. Ten seconds of very un-Noblesse like behavior later the box was empty._

_The following day, when she opened her locker, Michiru was nearly buried alive by flowers and a simple note that read;_

_Thank you for the chocolate._

Sitting in his room, Ichigo smirked at the memory. She was a nice girl, and her shyness was kind of cute, but she wasn't really mate material. Pity, really. Then again, it might be nice to have a mate that wasn't strong willed, one slightly timid. He'd have to think about that more later, she did give him his first chocolate, after all.

He closed his black suitcase, filled with tea and chocolate ranging from bags, leaves, canned, bars, expensive boxes, and even powder for hot chocolate. He was going to be in Seireitei for an unknown amount of time, and he was unsure if they had what he needed there, so he'd bring his own. There was no possible way for him to live without his tea and chocolate.

His Jigokucho fluttered behind him as he made his way to the Urahara shop. They were leaving tonight, a group consisting of his sister Karin, the Quincy Ishida, the healer orihime, the shield Sado, Urahara's cat, and himself.

An odd group, no doubt, but they were all the spiritually aware beings that his sister had known and who had known Rukia.

He walked down the brisk Karakura streets casually. He was in no rush, seeing as he had left early, something he always tried to do, he didn't like having to rush. Speaking of rushing, he could feel most of the group running as fast as they possibly could to the shop, only Ishida seemed to walk normally.

There was a slight breeze tonight, something his Jigokucho seemed to have difficulties dealing with, and the moon was full. It would be described by the Noblesse as not quite beautiful, but pleasant. He could honestly say he enjoyed the calming walk. The streets were empty, the sidewalks abandoned, light was provided only by the moon, stars, and occasional lamppost, giving the world around him an unreal feeling.

When he finally reached the shop and climbed down the ladder, somehow doing that elegantly, he was met with a pervert, a cat, his sister, a Quincy, and two surprised teens. They obviously hadn't received the memo about his spiritual abilities.

He gave a slight sigh, he was going to have to give an explanation, seeing as they weren't that acquainted at school. It was best that they were not suspicious of him while they broke into Seireitei. Resigning to his fate, the Vampire Lord walked over to the group to explain. Joy.


	7. Chocolate's Good

**I apologize for taking so long, and will blame my lateness on a combination of a lack of desire to write, Halo4, my new Bamboo Splash sketch pad, and my laziness.**

**I would like to thank Maverick14th-Sunbae-Sempai-Chan for her help, as I have become entirely reliant on her keen eye to catch my mistakes.**

**I would also like to thank FoXsHaDoWwRaItH for their PM, which re-inspired me to write.**

**If you have any suggestions or requests for this story, please share them with me via PM or review.**

**Thank you for taking time to read my story, there's nothing like seeing how many people enjoy what you wrote. **

* * *

Ichigo stood underneath the Urahara shop, staring blankly at Sado and Orihime, who stared at him in confusion.

"Sado-San, Inoue-San, how are you this evening?" Asked the noblesse.

This seemed to bring them back to reality, as Orihime cheerfully responded.

"I'm good, Kurosaki-San, how are you?"

He gave a smirk, causing the young girl to blush madly. "I am well, thank you for asking. And you, Sado-San?"

His reply was a grunt and a nod. He could accept that.

"I'm sure you're both wondering why I'm here, so I've decided to tell you." spoke the Vampire Lord.

Everyone leaned slightly closer, even though they were standing several feet from one another.

"I'm here," He began. They inched closer, still pointless. "To find out if Seireitei has good tea. And chocolate, chocolate's good, I like chocolate." He began daydreaming as they all face-faulted, thinking of his new favorite food.

"Mmmm, chocolate." He mumbled, staring of into space with…sparkly eyes?

After some awkward chuckling on Urahara's part, he tried to start his explanation of how they were to enter Soul Society, but was stopped by Ichigo, who apparently had finished daydreaming and was now sucking on chocolate Pokki.

"I need not hear this." He said, speaking clearly without removing his chocolate. "I'll just take a Senkaimon and meet you there."

He turned, opened a Senkaimon with a wave of his hand, and disappeared before they could say anything more.

Silence reigned supreme in the training ground before…

"I wish I had some Pokki."

Everyone turned to the owner of the voice; Sado. He looked back.

"What? Chocolate's good."

* * *

Ichigo stepped onto the dusty ground of west Rukongai, careful to avoid any trash littering the streets.

_This _was heaven? He actually shuddered at the thought of hell. If paradise was poverty, what would eternal damnation be like? Then again, he was the noblesse, he truly didn't have a religion, being almost a god himself.

He wandered the streets for some time, ignoring the curious stares of the community's inhabitants before he heard a call.

"Excuse me, young man with the suitcase." Came the voice of an elderly man. "Would you care to join an old man for some tea?"

The noblesse gave a brilliant smile, causing several nearby women to swoon.

"I would love to."

* * *

"That Asshole!" seethed Karin. "How dare he attack Jidanbo!" the group of Ryoka walked the streets of west Rukongai, following after Urahara's cat, Yoruichi.

"Calm down, Kurosaki." said Ishida, adjusting his glasses. "Jidanbo was healed by Orihime, all that maters now is getting into Seireitei and rescuing Kuchiki."

Sado agreed with a grunt.

"We're almost to the elder's house, he should be able to direct me to my friend, who can get us within Seireitei." Informed the cat.

They didn't bother asking who the friend was or how they would get them into Seireitei, Yoruichi probably wouldn't tell them anyways.

"The elder should be right about…..here?" surrounding the house the elder was supposed to live in was a horde of women, all pushing and shoving to see through windows or the open door.

Sado was the first to speak. "I think I've found Ichigo."

"As much as I hate to admit it, this is most likely his doing." Okay, so the Quincy was slightly jealous, he was a guy, after all.

Not bothering to wait, Karin dashed to the door, pushing and shoving through the various women until she entered the house.

"Ichi-Nii, you in here?" she called out, ignoring the fuming females behind her.

"Ah, Karin, I take it entering was more difficult than you had originally thought?" asked her brother with a smirk.

"Shut it, Ichi-Nii. Care to explain why the house is being mobbed?"

He mumbled something.

"What was that?" she asked.

"I caught a woman who was falling in the street." he said quietly, almost as if he were embarrassed.

"So?" her question was met by uproarious laughter from her brother's companion.

"So, after her drink spilt on him, he removed his shirt, in the middle of the road!" laughed the elderly man. Karin joined him on the floor seconds later, trembling from uncontrollable laughter.

Ichigo could only blush slightly, drawing dreamy sighs from the women watching.

"If your done speaking about shirtless strawberries," commented Yoruichi dryly. "We need to speak to the elder about finding my friend."

"Is that you, Yoruichi? My, it's been quite a while since I last saw you, how has life…..er….after life, been treating you?

"I've been well, elder. Do you think you could inform me of the whereabouts of the Shiba family?"

"Just wander that-a-ways." answered the elder, vaguely gesturing the direction they were to travel in.

All but Yoruichi and Ichigo developed sweat-drops.

"Er, thank you elder." said Yoruichi, still fighting the urge to sweat-drop.

"Anytime!" he replied cheerfully.

* * *

The group of Ryoka (and a single Jigokucho) walked in silence along the dirt road. Well, they would have been walking in silence if Ichigo's shoes didn't click with every step. The group wondered how that was possible on a dirt road.

After a few hours of boring travel, during which the chocolate loving Noblesse became more and more agitated, having missed his designated tea-time twice, the house came into view.

Massive sweat-drops appeared at the sight of two giant arms holding up a banner. What kind of crazy person would do something like that? You'd have to be head of a firework-making noble house to do something so odd.

Before they could enter they were blocked by two men, twins by the look of it.

"Halt!" They cried.

Ichigo, either not hearing them or not caring continued to walk. Sure he had chocolate to keep him from going ballistic, but he missed his tea twice. There was a chance to make tea within the building and he would move mountains to get it.

He glared at the two men with glowing red eyes, daring them to keep him from his tea. The two men suddenly felt small and so terribly weak, as if the teen before them could crush them with his breath alone.

"Move if you wish to continue your pitiful existence." he commanded, not using his Noblesse powers in the slightest.

The twins immediately complied, allowing the Vampire Lord to pass between them. The group watched, shocked, as he vanished into the house. They tried to follow but were blocked by the twins.

"Halt!" apparently it only worked for Strawberry-Sama.

* * *

Ichigo descended the stairs, coming to a door that was slid open without thought. He was met with the sight of a light room, a woman lounging on a pile of pillows on the far wall, smoking a pipe.

What really caught his attention was the table in front of her, for on that table was one of the universe's greatest creations, only behind chocolate; tea.

It began pouring itself into an empty cup, much to the woman's shock, but he didn't notice her reaction as he walked towards it, his attention fixated solely upon the divine drink.

The cup, now filled, levitated to his hand, allowing him to take his first sip in _hours._ It was truly amazing that he had already sacrificed so much for his sister's goal. Two tea times was an incredibly long time to go without the drink.

Kūkaku Shiba sweat-dropped at the look of ecstasy that appeared upon the Noblesse's face as he enjoyed his tea.

She cleared her throat in an effort to gain his attention but he either didn't hear her or was ignoring her, something that infuriated her to no end.

"Look at me, damnit!" she yelled, chucking a spare pillow.

Said pillow found itself shredded by the Noblesse's outstretched hand. Poor, innocent pillow, it had done nothing to deserve such a fate. or, maybe not. It did attempt to interrupt Ichigo's tea time, after all. In the mind of the Vampire Lord, such a thing was to be punished with a fate worse than death. The pillow probably got off pretty lucky.

His eyes glared at her, causing her anger to dissipate instantly. She didn't know who he was, barging into her house like a king and drinking her tea, but that glare terrified her. It almost seemed as though he would be willing to kill someone for the sake of tea. Ridiculous, right?

She turned her head to the sound of the door sliding open once more, revealing four youth, a familiar cat, and a Jigokucho that made its way to the man sipping tea without a care in the world, landing upon his shoulder.

"Kūkaku." Addressed Yoruichi.

"It's been a while since you last visited me, Yoruichi." Spoke the Shiba clan head. "What kept you?"

"I was….busy…..in the human world." answered the cat, sitting before the one-armed woman.

"Too busy to visit an old friend?" accused Kūkaku. "Well, you're here now. I suppose the only reason you've come is because you need something, right?"

Yoruichi actually looked a little sheepish. "Y-yeah." the cat admitted.

"We need a way into Seireitei." Karin said. Gaining the attention of Kūkaku.

"Oh, a shinigami?" asked Kūkaku, slightly surprised that she hadn't noticed earlier.

"Yeah, she recently gained her powers from Kuchiki Rukia, who has been condemned to death. We plan on saving her." explained Yoruichi.

"Hmm, is that so? Well, I trust you, but I don't trust her, or any of her little friends. So I'll be sending my brother with you." she turned to a side door.

"Ganju!" she called. "Get your lazy ass in here!"

The door opened with haste, revealing a strangely dressed man kneeling.

"Yes, Nee-Sama?" he asked.

"This group," she gestured towards them even though her brother couldn't see the action. "is infiltrating Seireitei. You will be accompanying them. Any questions?"

His head popped up to peer at the group.

"Yeah," he answered. "why is that one dressed like a shinigami?"

"Why are you dressed like a moron?!" Karin shot back.

"Take that back! This is the traditional clothing of the Shiba household!"

"Is that so? Well this is what I got when I received my shinigami powers!" she countered, refusing to retract her previous statement.

"So you are a shinigami!" he yelled, pointing at the young girl.

"Finally realized that, did you? Why else would I be wearing this and have a gigantic sword strapped to my back? Cosplay? Grow a brain you dumb monkey!"

The argument quickly escalated into a brawl, both seemingly out for the other's blood.

The Ryoka group watched with slight amusement, but Ichigo preferred to turn his attention towards the well-endowed woman leaning on the wall and calmly smoking her pipe.

He walked over, chocolate Pokki hanging loosely from his lips. She cracked an eye open to look at him, still wondering who he was, as Yoruichi hadn't explained. He looked her up and down several times before leaning against the wall, never ceasing in his staring.

"What are you doing?" she asked, starting to feel slightly self conscious.

"Thinking." was his simple reply. This confused her more.

"About what?" she inquired. He seemed as if he were about to answer when two tumbling bodies crashed into them.

When Karin and Ganju resumed their fighting Kūkaku noticed the lack of her pipe, which she located on the floor. She bent down to pick it up, causing Ishida to fall unconscious across the room, but before she could retrieve the object Karin's foot landed on it.

She was going to yell at the two while beating them down, but a sudden, massive amount of killing intent flooded the room. She turned towards Ichigo, the source of it, and realized the cause.

The Pokki that was in his mouth had been broken off and now lay on the floor as nothing more than chocolate-covered crumbs.

"My Pokki" his voice was barely a whisper.

"My Pokki" he repeated slightly louder.

"You destroyed my Pokki" it was at a normal level now.

"**YOU DESTROYED MY POKKI!" **His yell caused the entire house to shake and the killing intent was suffocating. Red energy encircled him, lashing out at the surroundings and burning everything it touched. He kicked twice, causing Karin and Ganju to crash into the opposite wall.

Thinking quickly, Kūkaku grabbed the box of Pokki from his jacket and shoved one into his mouth, instantly placating him.

Sweat-drops would've formed had they not all been completely and utterly terrified.


	8. Proposition

Yeah, I know, about damn time I updated. Truthfully, if it weren't for all the reviews I get asking for more I wouldn't update at all. I never planned this story out, didn't even come up with a plot, and am now just writing what comes to me (more like forcing it out).

I would like to thank Maverick14th for all her help again and all the reviewers who keep praising my work, it's the reason I keep writing. I apologize for the lateness, but it isn't entirely my fault. mostly, yes, but not completely. my excuse is that Maverick14th-Sunbae-Sempai-Chan forgot about her Kohai and didn't get back to me for three weeks. three weeks I didn't try writing more in ^_^

Eh, I think I was already over a month since my last update, so it really doesn't matter.

Once again, thank you my wonderful readers, I do this only because of the reviews( and occasional PM) I keep recieving. If there's something you want to happen in the story, please let me know, It could probably fit into my non-existant plans without too much trouble. ^_^

Please read, enjoy, and review ^_^

* * *

Slowing her breathing, Kūkaku tightened the grip on her katana. It slid out of the sheath silently, and with one lightning-fast movement it was at the neck of the figure at her bedside.

The dark room revealed nothing about the intruder, but she could tell that they were perfectly calm, either unknowing of the danger they were in or not feeling as though they were in danger.

"Seven." Kūkaku narrowed her eyes in confusion. Seven? What was that supposed to mean?

"Seven" the figure repeated. "steps." slightly less confused, she sat up on her bed, the katana never leaving the figures throat.

"You only reacted upon my seventh step." they spoke. "I could have killed you upon entering the room. Such foolishness is unbefitting of the Shiba head,"

"I was asleep." she defended. " your 'seventh step' woke me up."

"You never went to sleep." the figure countered. "You were laying awake in your bed, thinking about your brother, as you do every night."

"Oh, so I have a stalker? I'm flattered, really." she was slightly creeped out by that, how did they know that she always lay in bed thinking about Kaien? That voice though, it was familiar, the name of the owner on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't place it.

"I have a….proposition….for you." they spoke. The figure's eyes opened- the Shiba head was unaware that they had been closed- to reveal crimson orbs, giving away the persons identity.

"You're cute, Ichigo." she said "But not that cute."

"I find it interesting that you immediately thought I was referring to the pleasures of the flesh" his voice was amused, but his eyes kept their steely gaze. Kūkaku squirmed a pit, the feeling of those eyes on her form made her uncomfortable. The fact that she wasn't wearing anything but a crimson sheet only contributed to that.

"What would you be willing to sacrifice" he asked. "For your arm back?" she froze. Get her arm back? Impossible! But if she could, what would she be willing to sacrifice? How much did her arm mean to her?

"I lost my arm in a firework accident" she lied. "It was cauterized and the tissue damage was to much, I can't regain my arm."

All amusement left his tone. "Don't lie to me." he ordered. "I know how you lost that arm, I know that you chose to let it remain a stub, to serve as a reminder for the mistake that almost cost you your life, the mistake that cost the life of your lover."

Wide-eyed, she could only stutter a "How?"

"nothing can be hidden from me." he answered. "You had underestimated an opponent, a weak hollow, and it removed your arm. Your lover ended up dying while trying to defend you. You lost your dominate arm, had to regain your fighting ability, learn to live with one less limb, and lost your lover, all because you forgot one simple fact; even an ant can kill a god, if given the chance."

She looked down in shame, only for him to cup her chin and force her to look at him. "Will you ever forget your lover?" he asked. She shook her head in the negative. He gave a sad smile.

"Then isn't the loss of him reminder enough? Was it really necessary for you to sacrifice your limb?" once again she shook her head.

"Would you like it back, to be whole again?" hesitantly, she nodded. "Would you give up your humanity to be so?" confused, she looked up at him once more.

"In order for you to regain your arm, I will need to turn you into a different being." he explained. "The side effect being that you would be loyal to me, as all beings of that kind are. Do you understand?"

"Y-yes." she would be whole again? And all it took was her loyalty? That meant he would gain the loyalty of the Shiba house, scattered as it may be, which wasn't something to take lightly. Then again, neither was giving someone an arm they had lost over a hundred years ago.

"I'll do it." she didn't know how long she had wished for her arm back, how long she had regretted not reattaching it that day. She had the opportunities and wasted it, foolishly thinking it was to remember her dead love. Now that she had the chance to get it back she would do almost anything for it.

"Think before you decide." he warned. "You're a strong, beautiful, aggressive woman, if I change you it will be difficult for me not to claim you as a mate.

At her questioning gaze he explained. "My kind take on mates, lovers, or spouses, call them what you will. In the end it is the same. If I were to mark you, the chances of me taking you as my mate are high. Are you okay with that? Is your arm worth that?"

"Yes." the answer was spoken with determination, showing the strong woman he knew she was.

It wasn't hard for her to decide. Ever since the death of her lover she had secretly wished for another, for someone to make her feel wanted, needed, and most of all, loved. If by doing this she would not only regain her arm, but gain someone like her lost love, she would do it.

It sounded as though it was common for his kind to have multiple 'mates' though, and she slightly disliked that. Let it be known that Kūkaku Shiba was a selfish woman, at least when it concerned a man.

However, the regaining of her arm was enough to make her overlook that, besides, it wasn't like she was opposed to having fun with other women, she and Yoruichi had experimented with each other often enough. This could be fun, especially if Yoruichi became one of his mates.

He gave a predatory smirk, causing her to shiver slightly. "Very well."

Moving his mouth to the nape of her neck, the Vampire Lord latched on.

Kūkaku gasped as his fangs pierced her skin. It was by no means painful, but it wasn't on her list of 'top ten most pleasurable experiences', nine of which were from experimenting with Yoruichi.

That all changed a second later when, instead of sucking her blood, Ichigo began to inject some of his own. A loud, throaty moan escaped her lips as it traveled through her veins like fire, alighting each and every nerve with pleasure never before experienced.

Nothing could describe the sensation accurately enough for the Shiba clan head as her body writhed in ecstasy. It was as if someone had granted her pure energy, renewing her body to perfection and building up deep within her soul.

The pain that would have been felt as her arm re-grew was drowned out by the sheer bliss his blood brought. This, however, did something else to her, igniting a passion she had long since buried. As had happened through her veins, a fire began to burn in her loins, her desire growing with each second he remained attached to her neck.

The instant he drew back she captured his lips, savoring the blood that remained on his fangs. Ignoring the crimson sheet that fell to her waist and revealed her naked torso, Kūkaku wrapped her arms, both arms, around his neck.

Momentarily pulling back to examine her regained appendage, tears of joy escaped her beautiful emerald eyes. The first thing she did with her new arm, besides having just wrapped them around Ichigo's neck, was to push the teen's lips to hers once more, claiming him in a deep, lustful kiss, one he was more than happy to return.

They spent the next hour or so like that, passionately making out atop her bed, before the Noblesse laid down, wrapping his arms around her. With but a thought his clothes changed, leaving him in a simple white t-shirt and black boxers, attire more suitable for the situation.

Burrowing deeper into his chest, Kūkaku let out a content sigh. For the first time in over a century she felt safe, nestled within the arms of her new lord.

She was barely aware of the soft kiss he placed upon her head before she fell into a deep slumber, and for once she didn't have nightmares about her previous lover's death.

"Goodnight," he whispered to her peacefully sleeping form. "my beautiful firework."

* * *

There was something different about Shiba Kūkaku, the group noticed. It may have been the gigantic smile she wore, revealing slightly elongated canines, the fact that she had her arm back, or that she was currently wrapped around Ichigo's arm, staring up at him with pure adoration as he calmly drank his morning tea.

Only Yoruichi noticed the smirk he wore while slowly emptying his teacup, one of his most prized possessions. It had cost him quite a bit of money-though nobody knew how he always had enough to pay for anything he might desire-but was well worth it, in his opinion.

It was of western design, a plain white cup covered in intricate vines that intertwined and swirled around it. There were two flowers, one on either side, both black with red edges, edges that seemed to be slightly jagged.

It was a very beautiful flower that gave of an aura of elegance and danger at the same time, fitting the Vampire Lord perfectly.

He placed the cup down gently onto a saucer in his left arm, the one Kūkaku was currently squeezing the life out of with her new right arm. When he placed both pieces of china upon the small table the group crowded around the Shiba head wasted no time jumping into his lap and snuggling into his chest.

Breathing in his scent, she sighed dreamily, just the presence of her lord made her feel amazing. It had to be something to do with the connection they now shared, though she was definitely not complaining.

Waking up in his arms was one of the best mornings she had ever had. Seeing as she absolutely detested mornings, usually because she was hung-over, that was saying something.

Shocked, and more than a little annoyed at her friends actions towards the teen that had caught her own attention, Yoruichi was the first to comment.

"What are you doing, Kūkaku?" asked the cat. "Ichigo's barely sixteen and still alive, you shouldn't be trying to seduce him."

The comment immediately brought a blush to the faces of Karin, Orihime, and…Ishida?

"What?" defended Kūkaku. "I'd be a fool not to go after a man like him. I have to thank you for brining me such a wonderful gift, though, I've always wanted a sexy, high-class teen for lonely nights."

Ishida was immediately knocked out from blood loss, flying into the far wall of the room, where Sado went to check on him.

"Damnit Ichi-Nii! Stop being the perfect man, it's getting annoying to see so many woman drool over you!" huffed Karin as she left the room, a piece of bacon hanging from her lips. She didn't want to see the older (deceased) woman fawning over her brother, even if they did look extremely youthful.

It was bad enough that she had to avoid his fan clubs, some of which contained her classmates, but now she comes to the world of the dead to rescue a friend and he's already gaining a new one! Couldn't he just take a break from being perfect long enough for all the women to find other men? Was that too much to ask?

Kami and Yami suddenly felt the urge to laugh, Karin could've sworn she heard them both.

Inoue, suddenly feeling extremely awkward, went over to Sado to help with Ishida.

"Oh come on, Yoruichi." teased a whispering Kūkaku. "We both know that you're just jealous."

Aware of the teen nearby, the werecat chose his/her words carefully. "I'm straight." the cat declared.

The Shiba head just giggled as she pressed her lips to Ichigo's. "And that's why you're jealous."


	9. Bad Neko!

**PLEASE, BEFORE YOU KILL ME, LET ME EXPLAIN! I HAVE A PERFECTLY GOOD REASON AS TO WHY I HAVEN'T UPDATED IN SO LONG...Okay, I have nothing. I just got caught up with different story ideas and couldn't think up the rest of this chapter, so it was gathering dust in a folder, waiting for the day I would finally get on my ass and finish typing it. Well, I'm back now, so this chapter should last you another four months or so, ne?**

**CALM DOWN, CALM DOWN!**

**It was just a joke!**

**Anyways, this is an update, as you are well aware (hopefully), and it is also the chapter that brings me to the 20k+ word mark. I'm so happy ^_^**

**Before the chapter I'd like to thank Xager-the-Chaos-King and his associates (partners in crime) for acting as my Beta team, as I have been unable to contact Sempai.**

**Yeah, that means you, Maverick14th -Sunbae-Sempai-Chan! How do you excpect me to make a great story without your help? Xager and his crew are good, but not anywhere near your level. ^_^**

**I would also like to remind my readers to constantly pester me about the next chapter, through reviews, PMs, or even my email (Syynex at gmail). If you don't bug me about it I probably won't get it done.**

**Now, to the chapter you have all been waiting for, enjoy!**

* * *

"W-what?" sputtered Yoruichi, a blush- which should have been impossible- spreading over their black fur.

"You heard me, Yoruichi-Chan~" chirped Kūkaku, resting comfortably in the Noblesse's arms.

"Kūkaku!" hissed the cat. How could she? It wasn't her secret to tell! Having known the werecat as long as she did, Kūkaku could easily follow Yoruichi's thought trail to its current destination, and made an effort to calm the ex-shinigami down.

"What? You think he didn't already know? Please, Ichigo-Kun knows everything." As if to confirm that statement, the Vampire Lord Smirked, revealing his brilliant white canines.

In hind sight, she should've expected something like this, Kami knows Kisuke had warned her more than enough times. That, of course, didn't stop her from feeling slightly ashamed and extremely embarrassed.

"H-how long?" she muttered quietly, looking at the ground and looking as sheepish as possible for a cat, which was pretty damn sheepish. It was Ichigo who answered.

"The day before I had tea with the foolish shinigami." Yoruichi understood who he was talking about immediately, causing a sudden depression to fall upon Kisuke back in Karakura town.

"He told you that I had read his mind, no?" As much as she wished it wasn't true, he had told her, which made her look all the more foolish. Heh, she was foolish because she didn't listen to the 'Foolish shinigami', what were the chances?

* * *

Tessai paused in his work, peering curiously at his boss as the blonde rocked back and forth in a corner, a dark cloud above him and tears falling down his cheeks.

Dismissing it, he continued with his work. The faster he finished the faster he could go to the clearance sale at the old pharmacy that was being closed down due to unsafe practices.

What luck!

* * *

"Yeah, he did." Admitted the werecat as she hung her head in shame.

"Then you should realize that I know everything he has ever known and more. You had no secrets from him and, now, you have none from me." His smirk became a full-blown grin, vicious yet amused, like a predator laughing at their prey as it feebly tried to escape.

"A-all of it?!" she stuttered in embarrassment. There were many things she'd rather not have him know, things like…

"Yes, like the time you were teasing little Byakuya and it escalated into a fight…."

Like THAT. Her black fur turning a brilliant shade of pink as Yoruichi attempted to hide inside herself.

"I do believe it ended with the two of you naked, sweaty, and pressed against each other." A dark chuckle escaped his lips. "That made one hell of a front page story, didn't it?"

"Y-yeah, it did." She confirmed. She didn't know how they got the picture, or why they made up the story, but that article was the bane of her existence for several decades. Her thoughts were interrupted by a teasing Kūkaku.

"Oh, is little Yoruichi-Chan embarrassed? So cute!" Golden slit pupils narrowed dangerously, all previous discomfort and awkwardness leaving immediately.

"What was that, Kūkaku?" Whispered the werecat softly, a steely edge sharpening her words as they hissed with venom.

No one, NO ONE, made fun of Shihōin Yoruichi!

"You heard me, Neko-chan, I said that you were-" Kūkaku never got to finish, a furious ball of black fur launching itself at her. The woman might have laughed if not for the claws scraping over her chest, tearing through her shirt and drawing faint lines of blood.

"Ouch! Hey, knock it off!" Shouted the Shiba head, futilely trying to pry the enraged feline from her flesh. The cat only hissed in response.

Now, one might think that Ichigo would be disturbed by this happening in his lap of all places, but he was perfectly fine with it, not bothered in the slightest by their little scuffle. Yoruichi would have gotten off scot-free, even though she was attacking his first subordinate, had she not made one crucial mistake;

She damaged his suit.

A careless, errant swipe caught on the light blue fabric, creating a rather large rip, and if there was one thing the Noblesse abhorred it was having his clothing messed up in any way, even down to the slightest wrinkle.

Before either of the women could react he had grabbed the cat by her furry neck and rolled Kūkaku off of him, raising from the floor and moving into another room, still carrying Yoruichi. The Shiba head contemplated following them, but quickly decided it was best to wait for their return, if two would return.

It was quite possible that one of them would not be coming back.

* * *

Yoruichi's eyes widened in horror when she finally figured out where they were going, causing her squirming to become more violent. Of all places he took her here, the most terrifying room in the entire house;

Ganju's bathroom.

The first thing the Vampire Lord did was turn on the faucet, letting cold water fill up the disgusting sink. It was important to note that the water turned a murky yellow-brown the instant it touched what was supposed to be porcelain.

Following that he held her form above said sink.

And lastly he let go of her, causing her to fall into the freezing filth with a large splash, one that remarkably did not hit the Noblesse.

After a few moments of letting her thrash in the water (If it could be called such), he reached in and removed her, watching with slight amusement as she choked and sputtered on the nasty liquid.

When she had recovered he gave a malicious-to her- grin and locked eyes with her.

"You ripped my suit." He stated rather plainly. "Maybe this will teach you to keep things nice." And with that he dunked her back in, repeating the process until the water became room temperature, at which point the simply dropped her in again and walked off.

The ex-captain was surely capable of getting out of a sink on her own, otherwise what did that say about Seireitei's standards?

* * *

Watching Inoue and Sado try to wake up the Quincy with a half-bored stare, Kūkaku let out a sigh. What was taking so long? Ichigo should have been back by now. He went to punish Yoruichi somehow, right? What could he possibly be doing to her in order to properly punish the werecat?

Moments of mulling over that thought caused her cheeks to flush a bright red. Already a mental picture was invading her mind, her best friend pinned to the wall by her lord's muscular chest, caramel legs wrapped around his bare waist. Sweat slowly trickled over his flesh, running over his chiseled physique as he panted over Yoruichi's neck, hot breath drawing shivers of pleasure. His lips ran over her skin, moving down…

Kūkaku violently shook her head, trying to clear away that image. Quite unsuccessfully, I might add. Would he do that? From what he had said last night he would, without a second thought. What about Yoruichi, would she? Surely she wouldn't try to avoid punishment by seducing him, right?

Oh, who was she trying to fool? Her best friend was probably aroused just by hearing Ichigo's name, she'd take any available chance to get with him, especially if it kept her from being punished…..

Punished…..

'Oh, Ichigo-sama, punish me more, give me more, I've been a naughty kitty, punish me, hurt me, slam my bad little pus-'

Kamidamnit!

The gods seemed to take pity on her- if only she knew- and her thoughts were interrupted by Ichigo's arrival. Yoruichi wasn't with him, which caused mild concern, but she was relieved by his current state of dress, nice and neat, as normal. If he had sex with her best friend would it look so good? No. Would he care if it didn't? Well, maybe. Did he possess the ability to change clothing with a thought? Yes.

Yeah, that really didn't reassure her in the slightest.

"What did you do to her?" She asked, a slight amount of dread taking root in her heart. Ichigo must have noticed it, as he shot her a calming smile.

"Oh, don't worry," He answered as he helped her to her feet. "I just helped her...cool down, a bit." The smirk he wore told her everything she needed to know.

"Don't tell me you actually…You did, didn't you? Only you would give Shihōin Yoruichi, the flash goddess, a cold bath, especially when she's in her cat form." She was honestly impressed- something rather rare- and could only imagine the pair of titanium balls he must have had. Of course, those thoughts also began to arouse her considerably, which wasn't helped by the devious smirk he gave her.

Oh, she loved that damned smirk! Every time she saw it her knees would grow week and a warmth would spread throughout her, more so around her nether-regions.

"I did, but that isn't important right now," The Noblesse whispered huskily. "Tell me, is that blood I smell?" He asked as his gaze moved to her scratched bust. Blushing under his scarlet eyes, she nodded.

"Y-yes, she drew some blood, but it's fine, I probably-" She was cut off when he placed a gloved finger upon her lips.

"Shh, I'll take care of it." Bending down, the Vampire Lord began to gently kiss her neck, quickly moving to the shallow cuts and ghosting across them one by one, giving each one individual attention. Darting out from his lips came his tongue, running over the red marks as slowly and sensually as possible. A tremor tore down her spine and it was suddenly hard to stand-

Or think-

Or breathe-

Or…..Or….

Her mind went completely blank and her body found itself losing all motor functions, but this didn't seem to bother Ichigo in the slightest, as he simply wrapped one arm behind her neck and rested the other on her hip, never pausing in his fun. Did he ever tell her about the heightened senses that his kind had? Meh, if she didn't know now he could just tell her some other time.

When he was thoroughly finished enjoying the taste of her blood- and the shivers he caused in waves- he scooped her up into his arms and walked away, completely ignoring the three gaping teens, two of which were unconscious seconds later.

"Huh? Ishida-san? Sado-san? Are you two alright?" Asked a worried Inoue, probably too innocent for her own good. He was just cleaning off the blood, right?

Smirking at their reactions, Ichigo departed in the direction of Kūkaku's room, well aware of the golden eyes that had been watching him from the beginning. After all, what was a show without an audience?

What….the hell…had she just witnessed? What had they been doing? Why were they doing that there? Were they aware of the four other presences in the room? Did they care? Was Yoruichi jealous, aroused, and extremely conflicted right now?

Yes, she most definitely was.

Sure, she could probably get with the noblesse with little trouble in her part should she revert to her human form, but he was Kūkaku's man right now, and she couldn't betray her best friend like that, could she?

Well, maybe if he came onto her, that could make it okay, right? Then it would be something for the Shiba head to take up with the boy, and she'd escape relatively blameless. Then again, the chances of him going to her when he had Kūkaku was small, and that was excluding the fact that she currently appeared to be a cat and his usually remarkable self-control.

But damn, what she wouldn't give to have someone like that, if only for a night. Oh, the things they could do!

No! Bad kitty, he was Kūkaku's…for now. She'd have to keep her thoughts about- and desires of- the orange-haired teen buried deep within until that changed. Ichigo seemed to be the type to impulsively do whatever- or whomever- he wanted., surely that would lead to the firework noble to leave him in search of someone more loyal, right?

Please?

Okay, that was probably the most unlikely thing ever, but perhaps she could join the two for some fun later on? The woman never had a problem with it before, hopefully adding a man- a damn near perfect one at that- to the equation wouldn't change anything.

You know, never mind, she wanted that change his addition would offer. It was the whole point, after all.

No matter what it took, she would be with him. Mark her words, Kurosaki Ichigo would belong to her!-

And probably a few others.


End file.
